This paper considers how the current system of animal research regulation in Australia emerged within the cultural and political climate over the last four decades. This inquiry uses the development of the Australian code of practice for the care and use of animals for scientific purposes (the Code) as a framework for understanding changes in standards for animal research practices. This analysis traces the development of themes across the eight editions of the Code. Changes in the way important conceptual terms such as ‘animal,’ ‘pain,’ and ‘ethics’ are defined across the eight editions are used to analyze changes in attitudes and understandings. The Australian system of self-regulated Animal Ethics Committees is compared to the systems in place in the US, Canada. and the UK. This comparison explores the origins of Australia’s legislative framework, highlighting both disparate and parallel systems to determine the details of international influences on early policy making in Australia. Drawing on the voices of those directly involved, the regulatory system for animal research in Australia is critically evaluated to highlight the strengths and weaknesses that exist in the historic and current systems.
